Growth Plan maps out £20bn-plus investment journey

The new Lancashire Combined County Authority (LCCA) has today published a Growth Plan that sets out how the county will build on its position as one of the UK’s leading economic powerhouses.

Its aim is to deliver growth between 2025 and 2035, with a strategic focus on exploiting the potential of five high-growth business sectors around existing and proposed ‘transformational’ projects. 

Developed by the LCCA and championed by the Lancashire Business Board (LBB), the plan identifies a pipeline of projects which it says have the potential to attract more than £20bn of additional public and private investment.

The plan’s authors say that together, these projects could create thousands of high-value jobs and strengthen Lancashire’s role at the heart of the national economy.

Investment in innovation, infrastructure and workforce development is key to the success of the plan to make the county a ‘prime destination’ for global capital, venture funding, and research and development. 

The business board is made up of senior members of some of the county’s foremost regional, national and international firms who have been brought together to champion Lancashire and bring a private sector perspective to policy decisions.

Mo Isap, who chairs the 17-strong board, said: “We brought our DNA to the development of the Lancashire Growth Plan, ensuring it builds on existing excellence in sectors while showing that we can deliver a step change in economic performance benefits not just the county, but the UK. 

“Our private sector expertise and perspective continue to inform the plan, but also strategies on transport, infrastructure, strategic development, and collaboration, detailing that Lancashire continues to be well-positioned to attract new private investment in key growth sectors.

“This prospectus showcases how Lancashire, aligned with government economic objectives, is contributing to the nation’s economic growth and that we are well positioned to play a significant role in UK plc.”

Stephen Atkinson, who chairs the Lancashire Combined County Authority, said: “This is a plan built in Lancashire, for Lancashire, but with national impact.

“It reflects the scale of our ambition, the strength of our business leadership, and our determination to deliver transformational projects that create opportunities across our communities and boost the UK economy.”

The plan’s vision focuses on exploiting the potential of five high-growth business sectors: National Security and Resilience, Clean Growth and a Nuclear Renaissance, Digital and Artificial Intelligence, Advanced Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence, and Culture and Tourism.

It also focuses on the development of ‘economic corridors’ - including a ‘central belt’ following the M55-M65 corridor, connecting Blackpool, Preston, Blackburn and Burnley.

The expansion of the North-South Cyber Corridor, linking Lancaster, Samlesbury and Manchester and investment in east-west transport links are also seen as important factors to the plan’s success.

A range of flagship projects with investment potential are name-checked in the document, include the enterprise zones at Samlesbury, Warton and Blackpool Airport.

Lancashire’s nuclear sector at Heysham and Springfields near Preston are also highlighted along with the emerging Eden Project Morecambe visitor attraction and Blackburn’s Cyber Skills and Education Campus.

You can view the Growth Plan here.